Automatic brake adjuster for hopper cars



Dec. 9, 1952 J. WILSON AUTOMATIC BRAKE ADJUSTER FOR HOPPER CARS Filed Feb. 28, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. fw 4%?4011 5 Dec. 9, 1952 J. WILSON AUTOMATIC BRAKE ADJUSTER FOR HOPPER CARS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 28, 1948 l I I I J IIIIIIRI llll'll [all ususwos! 9- Dec. 9, 1952 J. WILSON 2,620,902

AUTOMATIC BRAKE ADJUSTER FOR HOPPER CARS Filed Feb. 28, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 .M' @2 1 WNW v./ INVENTOR.

MAB-04M Dec, 9, 1952 J. WILSON 2,520,902

AUTOMATIC BRAKE ADJUSTER FOR HOPPER qARs Filed Feb. 28, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ESQ INVENTOR.

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Patented Dec. 9, 1952 AUTOMATIC BRAKE ADJUSTER FOR HOPPER CARS Jack Wilson, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Universal Railway Devices 00., a corporation of Delaware Application February 28, 1948', Serial No. 12,112

4 Claims.

Foundation brake gear for hopper cars includes a cylinder lever beneath the slope sheet of a hopper at one end of the car, a rod connected to its lower end for transmitting braking power to a floating lever for the adjacent truck and through it, and another rod along the middle of the car beneath the center sill structure between the hoppers to a floating lever adjacent to the other end of the car and fulcrumed on the opposite side of the car from the first mentioned rod. This peculiar arrangement has made automatic brake adjusters for other foundation brake gear unsuitable for use on hopper cars, and has thwarted eflorts to supply satisfactory automatic adjusters for that type of brake mechanism.

The principal object of this invention is to supply that need, and, generally speaking, that is accomplished by connecting a rotary adjuster with the fulcrum of the floating lever remote from the cylinder and operating it by simple means that avoids the hoppers and other necessary things under the car.

This application is a continuation in part of my abandoned application Ser. No. 705,529, filed October 25, 1946.

Fig. l is a diagrammatic side view of a hopper car and its brake mechanism;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic plan view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a diagram of the brake mechanism for a hopper car with the parts distorted so as to show all of the levers in a single plane;

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic plan of a foundation brake gear for a hopper car and an automatic adjuster embodying this invention;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic side view looking at the bottom of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of a part of the adjuster mechanism that is between the center sills;

Fig. 7 is a transverse section taken on the line 7-4 f Fig. 4;

Fig. 8 is a transverse section through a part of the operating mechanism, particularly on the line 8-8 of Fig. 9;

Fig. 9 is a vertical section taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 10 is an enlarged vertical section taken on the line Hllil of Fig. '7; and

Fig. 11 is an enlarged vertical section taken on the line H-H of Fig. '7.

In Fig. 1, 10 indicates an air brake cylinder located beneath the slope sheet (I of a hopper at the right end of a car generally indicated by [2 and having a push rod l3 connected to a cylinder lever l4 fulcrumed at l 5 and having its lower end connected to a red It by a pin i'i. lhe rod [6 communicates the braking force to a floating lever [8, which operates the brake gear IQ of the adjacent truck and through a rod 28 extending along the middle of the car beneath the center sill structure 2| operates a floating lever 22, which, in turn, operates the brake gear 23 of the truck at the opposite end of the car.

When such a brake mechanism is properly adjusted, the admission of air to the cylinder it causes the push rod [3 to move to the right swinging the cylinder lever M to the right about the fulcrum l5, and through the rod it and associated mechanism just mentioned applying the brakes to the two trucks at the opposite ends of the car.

Wear on the brake shoes and other things gets the brake mechanism out of adjustment, requiring a longer stroke of the push rod [3 and making adjustment appropriate in order to have a substantially uniform movement of the push rod, bring the shoes against the Wheels, and apply the braking pressure.

This is accomplished in the present instance by shifting the fulcrum 2 of the floating lever 22 remote from the cylinder Iii-shifting that fulcrum an amount corresponding to the excess of clearance caused by wear on the brake shoes, etc., thereby restoring the normal condition of operation of the brake gear. This adjustment is accomplished automatically as the slack in the gear occurs.

The brake adjuster The adjustment is efieeted by rotary take-up means, here illustrated as a sheave 25 (Figs. 7 and 10), upon which a chain 26 is adapted to be wound, one end of it being connected to the sheav 25 and the other being connected to the fulcrum 24 of the floating lever 22 by a clevis 2?. Use is made of a sheave and chain because of their acceptability in railway practice, but other equivalent mechanical movements are intended to be covered and will be availed of by others when preference so dictates.

The adjustment, once effected, is maintained by restraining the rotation of the sheave 25 in the direction to unwind the chain 26, and this is accomplished by means of a pawl 23 (Figs. 10 and 11) engaged with a ratchet 29, shown in Fig. '7 as in one piece with the sheave 25.

The sheave 25 is rotated in a direction to adjust for slack, to the right in Fig. 10, by means of a pinion 38 (Fig. 7) meshing with a gear 3!,

shown in Fig 7 as integral with the sheave 25 and on the opposite side to the ratchet 29.

The ratchet 31' of that mechanism (Figs 5, 6,

8, and 9) has a cylindrical bearing or hub portion 38 journalled in a bracket 39 secured to the inner side of the center sill 36. The bearing or hub portion 38 has a polygonal opening 46 through it to receive and cooperate with the end of the shaft 34 opposite to that secured to the driving pinion 39. As in that case, the shaft is made fast to the ratchet by a bolt 4| passing through flanges 42 on the hub portion of the ratchet 31 and the shaft 34.

The ratchet 31 is straddled by a lever composed of substantially duplicate parts 44 fulcrummed and rotatably mounted at 45 on the hub portion 38 of the ratchet 37. They extend downwardly and are equipped with a pin 45 on which a driving pawl 47 is pivoted in position to cooperate with the ratchet 31.

The lever parts 44 extend upwardly, as shown in Fig. 6, and are equipped with a pin 48 by which they are connected to the adjacent end of a rod 49, the opposite end of which is made fast by a nut 50 to an arm secured on the floating lever l8 and the rod l6 by a pin 52, and serving to continuously establish operative linkage connection between the push rod l3 or cylinder lever M of the air brake mechanism.

The lever parts 44 are also equipped with a pin 53 connecting them with a spring guide rod 54 having a collar 55 adapted to compress a coil spring 56 enclosing the rod against a bracket 51 through which the opposite end of the rod 54 passes.

The automatic slack adjuster is operated each time the brakes are applied by air, and, when the slack in the foundation brake gear makes travel of the push rod beyond the desired movemen for which the gear is designed, the arm 5| will take the connecting rod 49 far enough to the right in Figs. 4 and 6 to cause the pawl 4'! in Figs. 6 and 8 to move over one tooth of the ratchet 31. Thereafter, upon release of the brakes the spring 56 will swing the lever formed by the parts 44 in the opposite direction and through the pawl 4'! drive the ratchet 31, and hence the shaft 34, the pinion 3i), and the gear 3|, in the direction appropriate to winding up the chain 26 on the sheave 25, where it is again held in adjusted position by the pawl 28.

In the preferred form her shown, the sheave 25 and the pawl 28 are in a malleable cast housing or frame 60 having a flange 6| riveted or otherwise secured at 62 to the bottom flange of the center sill 35 (Figs. 4 and '7). The sleeve is journalled on a shaft 63 in bearings 64 and 65 in the opposite sides of the casing 60 and made fast by a key 66 inserted through the bearing 65 opposite to the left end of the shaft in 65, the right end coming against the bottom of the bearing 64.

The pinion 36 has its hub portion 32 journalled in a bearing 61 carried by the casing 60, and is prevented from moving to the right in Fig. '7 by a flange or collar '68. Careful observation of the parts as shown in Fig. '7 will indicate the order of assembly beginning with the pinion 30, the combined sheave and gear 3|, the shaft 63, and the key 66.

That assembly with a suitable length of shaft 34, the pawl and ratchet at the opposite end of the shaft with the associated lever 44 and spring 56, compose a commercial unit especially suited for application to hopper cars in association with an appropriate rod 49 and arm 5| to make the necessary connection with some part of the foundation brake gear.

The purpose of the automatic slack adjuster of this invention is to limit the total travel of the push rod to a predetermined maximum by taking up slack in the foundation brake gear in small increments as required to maintain that limit.

The necessary power to operate the slack adjuster automatically comes from the air cylinder, and hence must be relatively small to avoid unduly burdening that source of power in the operation of the adjuster.

It is an important feature of this invention that the gearing, levers, and spring 56 are so related to the work to be done and the power available that the drain on the air brake system is within allowable limits.

To illustrate this, the critical data for certain parts in an embodiment that has been found satisfactory are here given.

The gear 3| is 4.8" in diameter at the pitch line. The pinion 30 is 2.4" in diameter at the pitch line. The pin 46 for the pawl 41 is 2%, on the center from the fulcrum of the levers 44. The pin 53 for the rod 54 is '6" on the center from the fulcrum of the lever, and the pin 48 for the rod 49 is 9" on the center from the fulcrum of the lever. The spring 56 is made of spring steel .225 in diameter with 44 coils 1%" inside diameter with a free height of 20% compressed 1%" in an assembly under twenty pounds, and has a 10-inch travel with a total compression of about pounds.

The adjuster of this invention readily fits into the limited space available under a hopper car without interfering with anything. The housing 60 and the bracket 39 are secured to the center sills 35 and 36 and mount the principal mechanism underneath the slope sheet H and out of the way of the adjacent truck. The operating rod 49 is, for the most part, between the sills 35 and 33, and is protected by them.

In this particular embodiment, the housing 60 puts the main part of the mechanism alongside the center sill. It brings the chain in alignment with the lever 22, the fulcrum of which is to be adjusted. The position of that lever, here shown as just beneath the center sill, may vary several inches in height, and the arrangement will vary accordingly. The height of the lever with respect to the sill becomes a sort of datum line by which the parts of the mechanism are located. In this instance, it will be seen that the chain 28 is correctly aligned with the fulcrum 24 that is to be adjusted and with the lower part of the sheave 5 on which it is to be wound. That is not an .mchangeable condition, but is desirable. Conditions may make it expedient to have the chain work on a slope or incline.

I claim:

1. In a brake mechanism for hopper cars having a cylinder lever beneath the slope sheet at one end of the car and working at one side of the car center, a rod connected thereto for applying brake power, a. floating lever having an adjustable fulcrum adjacent to the other end of the car and at the opposite side of the car center, the combination therewith of a rotary take-up mechanism for automatically shifting said fulcrum, said take-up mechanism being mounted on the same side of the car as said fulcrum, a shaft for rotating said take-up mechanism extending crosswise to the car, an operating lever on said shaft located adjacent the center of the car, linkage connecting said operating lever with said first-mentioned rod including an arm extending transversely from said first-mentioned rod toward the center line of the car, and a rod connecting said arm with said operating lever and located beneath and along the center of the car.

2. In brake gear for hopper cars of the type having an underframe including a center sill structure, and a plurality of hoppers formed in part by slope sheets, with at least some of the hoppers having their bottom portions extending below and straddling the center sill structure, said gear including a, brake cylinder mounted on the underframe at one end of the car beneath a slope sheet of one of said hoppers and at one side of the center sill structure, a push rod mounted in the cylinder, a pair of floating levers disposed horizontally below the center sill structure at opposite ends of the car, one being operatively connected to the brake cylinder push rod and the other having an adjustable fulcrum on the other side of said center sill structure, a tie rod between said floating levers, a rotary takeup mechanism mounted on the car underframe adjacent said adjustable fulcrum and on said other side of the car, means connecting the takeup mechanism to said adjustable fulcrum for fixing the position thereof, a shaft for rotating the take-up mechanism extending crosswise of the car from the take-up mechanism to the center sill structure, an operating arm on the shaft adjacent the center sill structure, and linkage operatively connecting the push rod to said operating arm for operating the take-up mechanism, said linkage and said tie rod extending along the center sill structure between depending portions of the straddling hoppers.

3. In brake gear for hopper cars of the type having an underframe including a center sill structure, and a plurality of hoppers formed in part by slope sheets, with at least some of the hoppers having their bottom portions extending below and straddling the center sill structure, said gear including a brake cylinder mounted on the underframe at one end of the car beneath a slope sheet of one of said hoppers and at one side of the center sill structure, a push rod mounted in the cylinder, a pair of floating levers disposed horizontally below the center sill structure at opposite ends of the car, one being operatively connected to the brake cylinder push rod and the other having an adjustable fulcrum on the other side of said center sill structure, a tie rod between said floating levers, a take-up mechanism mounted on the car underframe adjacent said adjustable fulcrum and on said other side of the car, means connecting the take-up mechanism to said adjustable fulcrum for fixing the position thereof, means for actuating said takeup mechanism in response to excessive push rod travel, said means including linkage operatively connecting the take-up mechanism to said push rod, and said linkage including portions extending longitudinally of the car adjacent to the center sill structure and between the depending portions of said straddling hoppers.

4. The combination with a hopper bottom car having front and rear hoppers and a center sill with portions of the hoppers straddling and extending below the center sill structure, an air brake cylinder located below the front slope wall of the front hopper and at one side of the center sill, and brake mechanism including front and rear floating levers disposed horizontally beneath the center sill, a rod pivoted to said levers and extending longitudinally beneath the center sill and between the depending portions of the straddling hoppers, the fulcrum of the rear lever being located at the opposite side of the center sill from that of the brake cylinder, and a slack adjuster having a part operatively connected to the fulcrum of the rear lever and another part disposed adjacent to the center sill, a push rod projecting from the brake cylinder and operatively connected by a vertical cylinder lever and a horizontal connecting rod to the front floating lever, a transverse arm on the connecting rod having its free end extending under the center sill, and linkage means connecting the free end of the transverse arm to the slack adjuster part adjacent the center sill for operating the slack adjuster to adjustably shift the fulcrum of the rear floating lever in response to excess push rod travel, said linkage being adjacent to the center sill and extending between the depending portions of the straddling hoppers.

JACK WILSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

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